IELTS Prep Class

Handout 2

IELTS WRITING TASK 2

Essay Introduction

Writing Essay Introduction

The introduction is the first part of the essay the examiner will read and it will
give them a good first impression of what to expect in the rest of the essay.

An IELTS writing task 2 opinion essay should have three parts and these three parts
should be:

1. Opening Statement : Paraphrase the question!

Paraphrasing means stating the question again, but with different words so that it has
the same meaning. We do this by using synonyms and flipping the order of the
sentences around.

Check the following Essay Introduction!

Question:

There is a good deal of evidence that increasing car use is contributing to global
warming and having other undesirable effects on people’s health and well-being

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement

Paraphrase:
Rising global temperatures and human health and fitness issues are
often viewed as being caused by the expanding use of automobiles.

Task 1 : Find out the synonyms used in the paraphrased statement!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Task 2 : Write down your own Opening Statement !

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

1
 IELTS Prep Class

Task 3. Write down your Opening Statement on the Question below :

Some aspects of celebrity culture have a bad influence on

young people.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2. Thesis Statement

This is the most important sentence in your essay. This is your main idea and it is about
how you feel about the whole issue in one sentence.

Let’s look at the thesis sentence from the previous example:

There is a good deal of evidence that increasing car use is contributing to global
warming and having other undesirable effects on people’s health and well-being

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement

Sample of Thesis Statement :

This essay agrees that increasing use of motor vehicles is contributing
to rising global temperatures and certain health issues.

Task 4 : What is the writer’s stance based on this thesis statement?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Task 5 : Now write down your own thesis statement!

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

2
 IELTS Prep Class

Let’s have a look at another example:

Some aspects of celebrity culture have a bad influence on
young people.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Task 6 : Write down a thesis statement from the question above!

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

3. Outline statement

Now that you have paraphrased the question and told the examiner what you think in
your thesis sentence, you are now going to tell the examiner what you will discuss in the
main body paragraphs

There is a good deal of evidence that increasing car use is contributing to global
warming and having other undesirable effects on people’s health and well-being

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement

Example:

Firstly, this essay will discuss the production of greenhouse gases by

vehicles and secondly, it will discuss other toxic chemicals released
by internal combustion engines.

Outline statement related to the body of the essay. It states the main ideas that will be
discussed later in the body paragraph. So, what you do is think about your main body
paragraphs and write about what they contain. Most importantly, they have to discuss
what is being questioned/instructed.

Task 7. Based on the example above, how many body paragraph this essay would
have? What are the main ideas from each paragraph?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

3
 IELTS Prep Class

Task 8. Now, write down the outline for the following question :

Some aspects of celebrity culture have a bad influence on

young people.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Task 9. Combine your answer from Task 3, Task 6, and Task 8 to create a
complete Introduction Part !

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

4
 IELTS Prep Class

Exercise 1. There are 6 main Questions in IELTS Writing Task 2. How would you write
the Thesis Statement to meet the questions? (Refer to Handout 1)

1. Agree - disagree

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

2. Discussion Essay

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

3. Advantages and disadvantages

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

4. Cause and Effects

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

5. Problem and solutions

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

6. Discussion of two points of view

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

5
 IELTS Prep Class

Exercise 2. Deconstructing the Introduction Part

Question: Learning to manage money is one of the key aspects to adult life.
How in your view can individuals best learn to manage their money?

Introduction:
One of the keys to adulthood is appreciating how to budget your finances. It is clear that
the best way someone can learn this, is by managing money during childhood. Firstly, the
essay will discuss the importance of parental involvement during childhood and secondly,
the essay will look at the importance of having a part time job during childhood.

Questions :

1. What is the task of this essay?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2. Identify :
a. The Paraphrase :
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
b. Thesis Statement:
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
c. Outline :
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

3. How many body paragraphs this essay going to be? List the ideas of each
paragraph!
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

6
 IELTS Prep Class

Exercise 3. Write down the Introduction part for each of the Questions? (Refer to
Exercise 1)

1. Some aspects of celebrity culture have a bad influence on young

people.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

2. Question: Learning to manage money is one of the key aspects to

adult life. How in your view can individuals best learn to manage
their money?

3. Computers are becoming an essential part of education.

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages and give your own

opinion.

4. The percentage of overweight children in western society has

increased by almost 20% in the last ten years.
Discussed the causes and effects of this disturbing trend.

5. An increasing number of professionals, such as doctors and

teachers, are leaving their own poorer countries to work in
developed countries. What problems does this cause? What can
be done to deal with this situation?

6. The free movement of goods across national borders has long

been a controversial issue. Some people argue that it is necessary
for economic growth, while others claim that it damages local
industries.
Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

7
 IELTS Prep Class

Handout 3

IELTS WRITING TASK 2

Essay Conclusion
Closing the Essay : Conclusion part

The conclusion is the easiest paragraph to write because in many ways you are just
using ideas you have already mentioned in your introduction and main body
paragraphs. However, this is the last thing the examiner will read and it is therefore
crucial that you finish strongly.

Never write any new ideas in your conclusion. A conclusion should always simply
restate the ideas you have in the rest of the essay. New ideas should be in the main body
and not in the conclusion.

It should paraphrase your thesis statement and the paraphrased task question should
be briefly summarised or referred to.

Writing Essay Conclusion

Some people prefer to spend their lives doing the same things and avoiding
change. Others, however think that change is always a good thing.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Introduction:

Many individuals would rather go through life staying the same, while other people
like the idea of facing new challenges. In my opinion, change is beneficial to our lives
because we can expand our worldview and gain new experiences.

What is the Red part ? …………………………………………………………………

What is the Blue part ? …………………………………………………………………

Conclusion:

To conclude, although some prefer to shy away from new ideas because they
feel comfortable with routines, I believe that change is advantageous for
developing an open mind and experiencing new things.

What is the Green part ? ……………………………………………………………….

What is the Red part ? ………………………………………………………………….
What is the Blue part ? …………………………………………………………………
What is the Purple Word called ? ………………………………………………………

8
 IELTS Prep Class

A more concise conclusion:

In a discussion essay, you can use a much more concise and direct conclusion that
briefly refers to the differing views and a restated opinion.

To sum up, despite people having opposing views, I think that

change is important for developing an open mind and experiencing
new things.
Green= cohesive device Red = referring to the different views (from task question)
Blue = opinion restated (from your thesis statement) Purple = linking word

As you can see, there is a lot of paraphrasing going on here. This is the key to getting a
good band score in vocabulary and task response. Paraphrasing needs a lot of practice
and it must be done right.

9
 IELTS Prep Class

Task 1. Scrutinize the following Conclusion, and check how it meets the
Introduction.

Introduction

It is argued that students should be taught real life skills, like how to look after
money. This essay agrees that they should be part of the curriculum. The essay will
first discuss how everyday competencies benefit people later in life and then talk
about the dangers of not being taught how to manage money at an early age.

Conclusion
In conclusion, despite the argument on teaching students real life skills, this essay
supports the idea that teenagers ought to be taught functional subjects like financial
planning because it helps them in adulthood and a lack of education related to these
topics can have serious consequences.

How does the writer start the conclusion paragraph ? ……………………………

List other phrases that you can use to introduce Conclusion paragraph!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

List the paraphrases used in the Conclusion paragraph! :

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Break down the Conclusion in Green, Red, Blue, and Violet part!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Is it possible to add a recommendation statement to this paragraph?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

10
 IELTS Prep Class

Task 2.

Write down a Conclusion paragraph to this Introduction!

One of the major problems facing the world today is the growing number of
refugees. Some say developed nations of the world should tackle this problem
by taking more refugees.

To what extend do you agree or disagree?

To
Introduction:
Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
A major global issue recently is the increasing amount of refugees. Some believe
that developed countries ought to deal with this by accepting more refugees. I hold
the view that developed nations should not take in more refugees as it puts a burden
on the welfare state and causes unease among local communities.

Conclusion:

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

11
 IELTS Prep Class

Task 3. Write down the Conclusion Part from Handout 2 Task 9

Some aspects of celebrity culture have a bad influence on

young people.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

12